It is currently unclear how the fire started, but Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other.
Ukrainian officials have reported the outbreak of a fire at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia Power Plant.
Local officials said it was a provocation by Russian forces and urged Western allies and the UN atomic watchdog to act.
According to Yevhen Yevtushenko, head of the military administration of Nikopol, which is across the river from occupied Enerhodar where the plant is located, Russian forces set fire to automobile tyres in the cooling towers to make it appear as though a fire had broken out.
“Perhaps this is a provocation or an attempt to create panic in the settlements on the right bank of the former reservoir,” Yevtushenko said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also said Russia was using the plant to blackmail Ukraine and playing on Western fears of escalation.
Russia, on the other hand, blamed the fire on shelling by Ukrainian forces, although no evidence has been provided.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said the fire has not caused an impact on nuclear safety
He added that any military action against the plant is a violation of the five concrete principles for protecting the facility, which were established at the United Nations Security Council in May last year.
“These reckless attacks endanger nuclear safety at the plant and increase the risk of a nuclear accident. They must stop now,” Director General Grossi said.
